Can Hypnotherapy help you become Pregnant?!

Ok, here at Old Town Hypnotherapy we think that hypnotherapy is pretty special, but it cannot directly cause pregnancy, best to be clear with that. But it can help indirectly, especially if stress, anxiety, or other psychological factors are affecting your fertility. In the UK, around 1 in 7 couples experience infertility at some point. Infertility is typically defined as not being able to conceive after one year of regular, unprotected sex. It can be an isolating and stressful experience, ironically being diagnosed with infertility can further affect fertility.

Here is 4 ways hypnotherapy can support you in getting pregnant:

1. Reducing Stress and Anxiety

Stress is a natural part of life, there is good stress that motivates and energises and bad stress that overwhelms and exhausts. Chronic bad or high levels of stress can have significant effects on physiological, hormonal, and behavioural systems. A growing body of research supports the idea that reducing stress can improve fertility outcomes. The connection between the mind and body is particularly relevant in fertility. Stress can disrupt the very delicate hormonal balance of ovulation and the receptivity of the uterus by activating the body’s fight-or-flight response, our response system for danger.  An activated flight or fight response results in an increased production of cortisol and adrenaline and these stress hormones inhibit the release of reproductive hormones like luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), both crucial for conception. It makes sense, if the world is ‘dangerous’ enough to activate our fight or flight response, it isn’t safe enough for a baby.

In men, stress can also impact fertility by reducing testosterone levels and impairing the production of sperm. High cortisol levels can interfere with the body’s sexual response and the function of the Leydig cells in the testes, which are responsible for producing testosterone. This disruption can lead to reduced sperm count, poor sperm motility, and abnormal sperm morphology — all factors that can lower the likelihood of successful fertilisation. This reduction in testosterone can also affect a man’s ability to get and maintain an erection and in both men and women, stress can reduce libido. Both helpful things when trying to get pregnant.

Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can give you the tools to reduce and manage stress.

2. Addressing Psychological Blocks and Negative Self Talk

Some people may have subconscious fears or emotional blocks about pregnancy or parenthood. Hypnotherapy can help identify, challenge, and reframe these issues, allowing the body and mind to align in their readiness to conceive. We often discuss in clinic the importance of focusing on what we want, rather than what we don’t want (e.g., ‘I want to be calm’, instead of ‘I don’t want to be anxious’). Our subconscious minds work tirelessly to achieve what it believes we want so we must understand the importance of focusing on what we wish to achieve. We use positive language to reinforce a sense of trust and confidence in the body’s ability to conceive and during the hypnosis part of the sessions we incorporate guided imagery, where clients may visualise successful conception and a healthy pregnancy, reinforcing positive expectations and reduce emotional tension.

3. Making Lifestyle Changes

Fertility is also influenced by behaviour and lifestyle choices. Unhealthy behaviours such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, poor dietary habits, lack of exercise and inadequate sleep have all been independently linked to decreased fertility in both men and women.

The brain isn’t keen on change, in fact we are hardwired to reject it. The brain prefers to keep doing what it did yesterday as we survived that, rather than entering the potentially dangerous world of the unknown. Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can help both by ensuring our stress is reduced so our learning brain (the prefrontal cortex) is activated and hypnosis itself, the trance state, is a state of learning. During trance, our minds become open and receptive. Our concentration and focus heighten, and new neural pathways can become embedded, facilitating change.

4. Supporting Fertility Treatments

Studies suggest that hypnosis can improve the success rates of IVF by lowering stress and increasing receptiveness to treatment. One notable study by Dr. Eliahu Levitas published in the journal Fertility and Sterility found that women undergoing IVF who were hypnotised during embryo transfer had double the success rate compared to those who were not. Other studies indicate that hypnotherapy can reduce anxiety, enhance compliance with medical protocols, and improve patients’ overall sense of well-being.

In conclusion, while hypnosis should not replace medical evaluation or treatment for fertility issues, it can serve as a supportive tool to improve mental well-being and optimise conditions for conception. By addressing the psychological and emotional dimensions of fertility, hypnosis offers a gentle, empowering path for those navigating the challenges of trying to conceive. If you’re struggling with fertility issues or looking for support on your fertility journey, consider booking in for a free Initial Consultation to get further information on how we can help you. I have completed specialist training and am a registered ‘Fertile Body Method’ Practitioner and both Lucy and Kelly have also undergone some further training in fertility. We are on hand to help.